The present invention generally relates to means for emergency response to a potential or actual oil spill from an oil transporting vessel. More particularly, the present invention relates to on-board oil spill response means for temporary disposal of the oil cargo of an oil transporting vessel.
Various temporary oil storage means are disclosed in the prior art which are generally towed to the site of an oil spill or positioned at a stationary site in the vicinity of an offshore drilling rig. No on-board temporary oil storage means have been identified by the Applicant suitable for response to a potential or actual oil spill in remote areas. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,779,196 to Knaus et al. an elongated oil storage container is disclosed to provide improved stability of oil storage means when being towed. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,195,951 to Finsterwalder an offshore, bottle-shaped container formed of reinforced or prestressed concrete is disclosed for the temporary storage of oil and the like. U.S. Pat. No. 4,506,623 to Roper et al. discloses a buoyant oil storage vessel comprising a flexible containment bag disposed within a wire rope cage.